Marijuana can be categorized into two main strains; cannabis sativa strains which are generally taller more. Or cannabis indica strains which are smaller and like its smell, offers a stronger more heavy stoned feeling.

These days the big name seed banks make life easy and offer auto-flowering marijuana seeds which flower at a certain point in their growth, feminized seeds which are 95% to 99% female and regular seeds. Of course you can also buy autoflowering feminized seeds to make life super automated.

Take a look at our research and reviews of the Top 10 Best seed strains in each sector.

Hydroponics simply means that the plants can grow without soil. They will usually grow in an inert growing medium and all of their micro and macro nutrient requirements will come straight from the water flow.

The advice from companies like Dealzer and SuperCloset are second to none – you can have the kit the next day and get growing by the weekend. We have worked all the major supplies over the years and these are the only two companies we recommend, I can honestly say you need to watch your back when dealing with some of the others.

Or you can save some dollars and piece it together from Amazon or eBay and get a decent system together – it will work and it might be just fine for what you need. Your a word of warning though, we find many of our visitors end up wasting time and money because pieces don’t fit, you buy more than you need, quality is sometimes questionable and advice is zero.

Hydroponic Systems – Buyers Reviews

There’s an amazing variety of hydroponic systems available with pros and cons to each. Choose yours.

The process of growing marijuana in a fine mist rather than an actual nutrient solution. The roots are confined to a dark, moisture proof area to keep humidity high with intermittent spraying using micro mist nozzles.

This is a terrific water/nutrient saving system. Nutrients are dripped right next to the root system which is held in aggregate (medium). There is less evaporation and this system is good for stealth or apartment growing.

Similar to the Ebb and Flow, however the tray above the reservoir is tilted so that a thin film of nutrient flows from the top to drain at the bottom. Nutrient solution is either timed or continuously pumped past the root systems.

A very basic system, with either plants all sitting in a medium or within pots situated above the main reservoir and wicks of thick cotton connecting the two. The wick uses capillary action to absorb nutrients up into the medium.

A Dutch method to grow marijuana, not so much of a hydroponic system just a method of maximizing crops. The concept is to force the plants to flower when they are very young and small, to push out a sea of green of marijuana plant heads. Got to love the Dutch!

Cannabis life cycle outside – Cannabis is an annual plant and if grown outside it germinates in the spring, lays down a lot of vegetative growth throughout the summer, and then flowers in the fall. When growing outside it is best to start germinating seeds inside and then planting the seedling at the start of the season in spring. So germinating your marijuana seeds early!

The season will vary depending on how far you are from the equator and also the elevation of your proposed marijuana garden. Generally you should be able to plant seedlings after the last frost of spring and grow right through to the first hard frost of fall / autumn, specifically the average overnight temperatures should not be below freezing 32° F or 0° C at any point because that kills marijuana plants.

What is the difference between, IR red and blue spectrum, nanometers, true Watts, HID/CFL/HPS/MH/LED, light cycles and timings? This knowledge base will help you get to grips with the ins and outs of each, as well as providing ideal sources to get your equipment.

Whether you need to set up a small and discrete growing environment or a larger grow space like a grow box or huge grow tent, we can recommend the best lighting for your needs and then point you in the right direction where to get them.

LED Grow Lights

LED grow lights have been growing marijuana for over a decade now and even NASA used them in 2012. LEDs have been in production since 1968 and as the decades progressed LEDs got brighter and cheaper to make. You now see super bright LEDs in car headlamps, stadium lighting and of course LED grow lights.

The technology is here in a big way and it works, fantastically. We know one of the best know Dutch seed banks uses them to grow some of their top secret buds, we have seen it with our own eyes and know they work better than HPS. However, not all LEDs are created equal. The cheap ‘purple’ light looking plastic UFO junk are the ones to steer clear of, look for ‘white light’ full spectrum, just like the sun, models with no fans, solid construction, honest specifications and a high end warranty. The full spectrum models in the top end range run nearly cold to touch, save around 50% in electricity and will run for over 12 years growing crops without a single bulb replacement. We take LED grow lights very seriously and review all the best models here every year.

High Pressure Sodium (HPS) Grow lights

High pressure sodium marijuana grow lights are a good choice for a lot of people, they have been used for growing marijuana indoors for decades. However they are not brilliant at transferring electricity into light and waste a lot of electricity on producing heat instead. LED grow lights are far more efficient at that process. The light HPS emit is also strong in the orange / red spectrum, around 2,200k, due to their inherent sodium content. If a gardener were to start a young plant under a HPS bulb, she/he would see impressive vertical growth so it is why MH lights with their more blue light are often used in the first stages and HPS in the later flowering stages. .

Metal Halide (MH Grow Lights) – A type of HID

MH grow lights – Metal halide marijuana grow lights primarily emit light in the blue spectrum which promotes excellent photosynthesis and therefore green vegetative growth. Blue light also keeps plants more compact, it is the closest thing to real sunlight. If you are going to use just one light this is a good compromise.

LED grow lights vs CFL

The compact fluorescent lights (CFL) are a fantastic way to grow in small stealth locations where heat emissions are very important to control, they are cheap to buy and run but they are generally limited on power and that means a poor yield. If you want some more power but still want to maintain a small heat signature, albeit more than CFL you might want to start looking into LEDs – especially the full spectrum LEDs. We have a good article here that outlines what you might expect from LEDs there days. More on LED grow lights.